Originally Posted by Wilfred Laurier

A buddy gave me his old rollers a few years ago. I don't find that I need resistance - the small contact patch seems to result in lots of tire deformation and loads of resistance without an added device, but I have not noticed significant wear. Wear is a big issue with trainers, probably because there is often some slippage between the tire and the roller because weight is suspended by the rear axle instead of the tire. Maybe don't use your hand-sewn silk casing racing tires, but trainer specific tires are not necessary for rollers IMO.